1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method for quickly and easily closing or modifying an opening in a building, such as a window, by magnetic fixation of a selected closure panel, or of a panel selected for properties which modify an existing closure panel already in place.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Magnetic signs which may be quickly positioned on the sides of automobiles or other metallic structures are well known. The force of attraction of the magnets carried in one facing surface of the sign enables the signs to become firmly attached to a surface made of a ferro-magnetic material and the signs can be manually emplaced at a selected position without difficulty.
With the growing intensity and criticality of the lessening of energy supplies available for heating and cooling living spaces and the interiors of various structures intended for habitation, rapidly increasing attention is being devoted to the problem of preventing thermal transfer through the defining boundaries of such structures, such as the walls and ceiling thereof. Insulation in various forms and of various types has been proposed, and thermal barriers effected by the provision of dead air space between the external environment and the interior of the structure have been a widely used expedient for reducing thermal transfer across the boundary of structures. Thus, in many types of thermal pane windows now available, two panels or panes of glass are provided in parallel relation and enclose between them an air space which, by reason of its poor thermal conductivity, affords good insulating properties while retaining the visual transparency of the window closure thus provided. In other instances, heavy storm windows are utilized and are placed in position during the cold season of the year and removed in warmer weather.
In the case of either the thermal pane construction or the use of storm windows, certain problems and disadvantages are posed in each instance. In the case of the thermal pane windows which include the double glass panels with the dead air space between the panels, elaborate seals must be provided at the edges of the panels in order to prevent the loss of air from between the panels, and the infiltration of cold external air into the interior space. At times droplets of moisture condense on one of the inner faces of the glass panels, obscuring vision and providing an unsightly appearance to the closure constituted by the thermal pane. Further, such structures are often relatively expensive due to the construction of the framing and seals which are utilized. In the case of storm windows, as these structures are normally used, a storage space for storing and locating the storm windows when they are not in use is required. Moreover, installation is frequently time-consuming and, over periods of extended usage, warping or distortion of the framing of the windows can prevent a tight fit and thus develop a loss in insulation efficiency.
In the case of both the thermal pane closures and storm windows, the type of closure which is effected by each is substantially invariable. This is to say that once a particular type of glass is provided in either structure, it cannot be varied as to light transmissibility of aesthetic properties except by the complete replacement of the entire structure at a very considerable cost. Moreover, it is seldom easy or convenient to quickly and easily replace the transparent glass panes which are utilized in these systems with an opaque panel system to provide semi-permanent privacy or, if it should be desired, one-way viewing. Further, the sound transmission properties of the panels used remains invariant except by complete replacement of the entire system.